Kennesaw Candidate Q and A with City Council Post 2 Candidate Anthony Gutierrez
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The municipal elections for five of the seven cities in Cobb County are currently underway. This includes Acworth, Austell, Kennesaw, Powder Springs, and Smyrna. Candidates are running for Mayor and City Council seats in these various municipalities. Some candidates are running unopposed, while others have challengers.
The Cobb County Democracy Center, in partnership with Spotlight, believes that voter engagement and informed decision-making are crucial in shaping the future of these cities and we encourage everyone to exercise your rights to vote for the candidates of your choice.
Candidates within competitive races have been asked to provide their positions on various issues to allow voters to gain insights into their perspectives and priorities as voters go to the polls.
COBB COUNTY DEMOCRACY CENTER: Tell voters about yourself.
ANTHONY GUTIERREZ: Hello, my name is Anthony Gutierrez and I’m a candidate for Kennesaw City Council Post 2. I graduated from Kennesaw State University in 2020 with a B.A in Political Science. I moved to Kennesaw the same year, so I’ve been a resident for a little over three, but it feels like seven with going to school here. I’m running for City Council because like many residents I see our current Council destroying the quaint and calm charm many of us love about Kennesaw. We are being bombarded with “luxury” apartment complexes that do nothing but raise our cost of living and crowd our roads. Our infrastructure is severely outdated and quickly getting to a point where we won’t be able to catch up. We have a system in place where someone can win elected office despite only getting 18% of the vote. We have a council that focuses more on rapid expansion than the problems many of us are facing. We need new leadership, not another carwash, mini storage space, and $2000 studio apartment complex.
COBB COUNTY DEMOCRACY CENTER: Tell voters why you are the right choice for the Kennesaw City Council and why they should cast their ballots for you.
ANTHONY GUTIERREZ: Our current City Council has their focus on new developments and future residents, rather than current and long-time residents of the city that gave them the positions of power they sit on. Whether it’s a complete disregard of them or just a lack of foresight, the direction they are taking Kennesaw doesn’t consider the needs and struggles of our people. Hundreds of us have made comments of our congested roads like Cherokee Street, so our Council builds 800+ apartments on the one lane road. We’ve complained of the outrageous rents where on average we are paying over $1900 a month for a one-bedroom apartment, over $600 above the national average (Rent.com). Knowing this our council approves more “luxury” complexes that START at these rates. While our rents go up, our cost of living rises, and our property taxes increase, they parade the developments they approve that directly cause these. We need members on our council that understand that we love Kennesaw because it’s a calm and affordable place to live and raise a family. If we wanted city living, we’d move to the city. Our Council is destroying the way of life we’ve worked so hard to achieve and we need voices that will fight against the gentrification of our home.
COBB COUNTY DEMOCRACY CENTER: What experience will you bring to the role?
ANTHONY GUTIERREZ: From a young age I’ve always seemed to find myself in a position of leadership from student organization to my more recent position on the Kennesaw Cemetery Preservation Commission. From president of FBLA/National Honor Society/Spanish National Honor Society in high school to the president of the largest Latino lettered organization on Kennesaw State Campus, to being a county delegate at state conventions, I’ve learned so much on what is required to be a successful leader. Being a leader is more than just saying what you know people want to hear, it’s making the tough decisions and standing up for those who feel powerless. Whether you’ve seen me on the campaign trail, or this article is the first time you hear from me you can see I stand for what I believe in and genuinely understand the struggles many voters are experiencing. That’s what sets me apart from other candidates who simply say and do the things that are easy to do.
COBB COUNTY DEMOCRACY CENTER: Give voters your thoughts on Ethical Leadership and why it should be a factor they consider as they elect the next Council person for this position.
ANTHONY GUTIERREZ: Ethics and foresight go hand in hand in the decision-making process, not only must an elected official think about how their vote will affect the current landscape, but they must also think about the future. What may benefit us in the short term, could have long lasting negative effects. Many members of our Council, in a sense are yes man, everything that comes before them they approve with little to no thought of the future. We have already begun to see the effects of this style of governance and many of us, rightfully so, are upset. Ethical leadership means standing up against corporate interests and to stand with your constituents, even if it means making an enemy. At the end of the day as an elected official you represent your constituents, not investors that want nothing more than to bleed Kennesaw dry. That is what it means to be ethical.
COBB COUNTY DEMOCRACY CENTER: Other Cobb cities are actively looking at setting up ethics committees to review complaints and remedy conflicts of interest by city officials. Would you consider setting up an Ethics Committee to address unethical behavior in government?
ANTHONY GUTIERREZ: Kennesaw already has an Ethics Board that meets on the 3rd Tuesday of April and October, but two meetings a year doesn’t feel like enough. When it comes to something like the ethics of our municipal government more of these meetings need to be held, for that reason I would suggest this board meets quarterly. Even if there is nothing to discuss or no participants end up commenting, the fact there was an avenue for constituents to air out frustration or point out conflicts is the important thing. It’s better to have held a meeting and not have needed to than to have needed to and not have it.
COBB COUNTY DEMOCRACY CENTER: Tell voters your thoughts on Transparency in Government.
ANTHONY GUTIERREZ: A government with no transparency is one run by tyrannical rule, not representation. When our elected officials hide information from us, or quickly sweep things under the rug, we often find ourselves in a place where constituents feel underrepresented and even plant distrust in our rule making process. Here in Kennesaw our City Council meets once a week, however only every other meeting is a “regular meeting” where constituents are allowed to speak on the subjects on the agenda or whatever they feel needs to be brought up. These meetings where voters are not allowed to speak are known as “work sessions,” typically these meetings are for the Council to discuss the finer details on upcoming votes. To the average voter since these sessions have no public forum they’re seen as less important and tend to have fewer viewers, in reality these sessions are the most important to tune into. It’s for this reason I believe all meetings should be open to public comment, when people are allowed to speak, they are more inclined to participate in the process and are more aware of what’s happening. It shouldn’t be unpopular to say that when you’re only meeting once a week for an average of thirty minutes that members of our council should pull themselves up by their bootstraps and stay an extra fifteen to listen to their constituents.
COBB COUNTY DEMOCRACY CENTER: What are your thoughts on Kennesaw’s economy?
ANTHONY GUTIERREZ: Here in Kennesaw, we are seeing a strong small business community and plenty of new opportunities springing up, but there needs to be an understanding that day-to-day life is getting more difficult for many of our residents. Our rents have gone up 24% in just a single year (rent.com), inflation has been hitting everything hard, and property taxes are only getting higher. Our council brags about reducing our mileage rate by a quarter of a point which on average saves each household roughly $30, doesn’t really make a dent in the grand scheme of it all. We need to do more to help our citizens fight back against inflation and keep more money in their pockets and my plan of energy independence does just that. Helping residents invest in renewable energies via a tax credit may be just the push they need to invest in such a project. The average home equipped with solar panels will save $1500 a year on their electricity bill (Forbes). Georgia Power is a monopoly, we pay all their expenses, they reap all the benefits, and our reward is a higher bill. Our electricity bills will increase 12% over the next few years and an extra charge of $4 a month is being added to fund their newest project. With the support of their municipal government homeowners and businesses can fight back and keep more of their hard-earned money.
COBB COUNTY DEMOCRACY CENTER: Share with voters your views on Kennesaw’s infrastructure.
ANTHONY GUTIERREZ: When we think of infrastructure, typically we think of it solely in the aspects of roads and buildings, when it’s so much more. Our roads now, besides some blemishes, are fine, however our technology is severely lacking. Fiber optic internet is the newest advancement in commercial/residential internet, but over 40% of Kennesaw residents have no options for it, while the other 60% only have one. In the day of working from home, online schooling, and ecommerce high speed reliable internet is no longer a luxury, it’s a necessity. The same goes for cellular service, how is it that in 2023 in a city with a major university we still have massive dead zones in our business districts and highly residential areas? Our government needs to work with internet and cellular service providers to catch up with the rest of the developed world before our technical infrastructure is so outdated, we won’t be able to catch up.
COBB COUNTY DEMOCRACY CENTER: Share your thoughts on Diversity and Inclusion and why it is important in Kennesaw.
ANTHONY GUTIERREZ: Like a good stock portfolio variance is key to success. When you build a community and network with people of all different types of backgrounds, ethnicities, ways of life, and political belief you have a marketplace of ideas and solutions that can trump any problem. One person cannot have all the answers, but when you have a team where everyone has their own expertise and life experiences, nothing is impossible. When we can rely on one another and listen to those who are more affected by an issue we can overcome any adversity.
COBB COUNTY DEMOCRACY CENTER: What are your thoughts on Kennesaw’s Public Safety?
ANTHONY GUTIERREZ: Thanks to our police department and the culture we have here in Kennesaw, violent and excessive crimes are problems we don’t have to worry about. I’m thankful for our officers and the sacrifices they make to keep our city safe. I’ve spoken before about investing in new training and equipment that focus on nonlethal tactics and humane apprehension. For instance, many precincts throughout the nation offer Brazilian Jiu Jitsu training that helps officers feel calmer in tense situations and more confident in their abilities to non-lethally de-escalate a situation (U.S. News). I also believe in investing in body cameras, because the best evidence of what happened on a crime scene is direct footage, plus studies have shown they help reduce use of force by 10% (ACLU).
COBB COUNTY DEMOCRACY CENTER: Please provide a closing statement.
ANTHONY GUTIERREZ: If you couldn’t tell by now, I’m not one to sugar coat things and I’m all about the issues. I don’t waste time with hypotheticals and stories that have nothing to do with the questions being asked. We do not have that luxury anymore; we need people in positions of power that understand and are experiencing the same struggles as the average American. That’s why I’m running. If you’re upset about what’s happening to our city, there’s only one solution and it’s getting new voices in our City Council. Ones that represent Kennesaw, not Wall Street investors and Silicon Valley executives. There needs to be a stop to the luxury apartments, to the mishandling of our elections, and to the career politicians who run purely to enrich themselves. If you want things to change its not going to come from re-electing the same voices that have led us to this mess. If you would like to learn more about the campaign, please visit Anthony4Kennesaw.com to learn more and reach out. I thank you for reading about all your candidates and I hope I can count on your vote on November 7th.
To follow Anthony Gutierrez, go to his social media sites:
Instagram: https://instagram.com/anthony4kennesaw?igshid=OGQ5ZDc2ODk2ZA==
Website: Anthony4Kennesaw.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Anthony4Kennesaw?mibextid=ZbWKwL
